I went over to Lancashire yesterday for an Oriental white kitten.
I knew it was young but this kitten is not even 6 weeks for £195!
Its disgraceful!
We have called her Pumpkin she can fit on your hand cannot eat biscuits as they are to big, should I have taken her.?
My partner said I should not leave any mouse traps about she is so small.

I went over to Lancashire yesterday for an Oriental white kitten.
I knew it was young but this kitten is not even 6 weeks for £195!
Its disgraceful!
We have called her Pumpkin she can fit on your hand cannot eat biscuits as they are to big, should I have taken her.?
My partner said I should not leave any mouse traps about she is so small.

If it's so disgraceful why did you go along with it?

As you ask... in my opinion no you should not have taken her, as if the breeder knows that people will accept them this young she will do it again, most people think that as soon as they can eat a little bit of food they are old enough to leave their mothers but this is wrong on many levels, the kitten still needs its Mother to develop properly emotionally and behaviour wise.

People like this breeder make me well and truly sick, its all about rapid turnover for them, churn em out, get the money in, then get another lot on the go, why go to the expense and inconvenience of looking after a litter for too long :rant:

You only have to look at Teeny's thread about little Tawny to see what happens when kittens are taken away too young.

...............

Most reputable breeders of pedigree kittens would have them vaccinated before they go to new homes, hence they will leave their mums about thirteen weeks, thats what happened with my new Maine coon kitten

When I was younger I had a wee rescue kitten at 6 weeks who'd lost her mum. She was definitely not right behaviour-wise bless her. She would sleep on my head and kneed it all night (ouch!), she'd also try to eat my hair. She was super timid and super nutty. I wouldn't have paid for such a young baby from a 'breeder', I would have come back to home empty handed.

I think you probably know the answer but head and heart do alway work together do they? Its an animal lovers nightmare going to buy and animal and seeing its not right - do I take it anyway (rescue it, so to speak) or do I walk away (heart saying 'but it needs my love').

All that said, you have her now, maybe the more important question is what to do now?

Well, you've got her now so just be extra careful with her. Make sure she gets all the nutrients needed and plenty of rest.

I had alrady paid a deposit by post. I knew she was young but not this young, so having driven to lancashire, see her taken out of a shed, not smelling to good, I thought I was a better option for her. She has been on my chest most of the day, we do have another kitten of four months who will teach her about play and so on, in a supervised way.

Have you taken her to your vets for a full health check,and get her wormed

aww poor thing , Having a young kitten myself (who was fostered by Moonbird for a week until we could have her) I would have left her with her mum but I can see why you did it hun . Good luck with her can we see some piccys of her please

In response to your question, depending on what the advert originally said I'd have demanded my deposit back and threatened them with trading standards.

That said, I wouldn't have paid a deposit before seeing them in person anyway.

Unfortunately it's a case of saving one and condemning many more - I can understand what made you take her, but you (not you individually - 'you' being everyone who take a kitten) have fuelled more litters to be bred and not cared for properly.

It's very, very hard - it's not just the effect it will have on this kitten or you, it's the kittens that are born in the future because people continue to buy them.
Having said that, when faced with one poor little smelly kitten needing someone to care for it, it's very difficult to think with your head and I don't want to sound absolutely awful - but you did ask :(

I know its a Oriental white kittent but that seems a little over priced under the circumstances as well you must have made somone very happy.

I went over to Lancashire yesterday for an Oriental white kitten.
I knew it was young but this kitten is not even 6 weeks for £195!
Its disgraceful!
We have called her Pumpkin she can fit on your hand cannot eat biscuits as they are to big, should I have taken her.?
My partner said I should not leave any mouse traps about she is so small.

Hi, Buy her some biscuits called Royal Canin Babycat 34. They are so tiny she will easily manage, its a biscuit thats made for easy weaning before kitten biscuits should be given. so I would highly recommend it, its not cheap but I cant recommend it enough. Most pet shops should sell it :)

http://www.feedem.co.uk/cat-41/cat-food-64/royal-canin-cat-69/royal-canin-baby-cat-4333.htm?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=ppc&utm_term=4333&utm_campaign=froogle

Don't beat yourself up over it - I would have done exactly the same thing - as most of us on here would if we are honest. The main thing is, you have her and it is about bringing her on and making sure she gets the right diet etc. I think you did the right thing - as if you didn't take her - someone else would have!! However, that said, I would be reporting this idiot for letting babies go well before they are ready as, no doubt, most of them will die, if not bought by knowledgable, caring people (such as youself), even at £195 a go!! :(

Don't beat yourself up over it - I would have done exactly the same thing - as most of us on here would if we are honest. The main thing is, you have her and it is about bringing her on and making sure she gets the right diet etc. I think you did the right thing - as if you didn't take her - someone else would have!! However, that said, I would be reporting this idiot for letting babies go well before they are ready as, no doubt, most of them will die, if not bought by knowledgable, caring people (such as youself), even at £195 a go!! :(

had to walk away from many unhealthy or neglected animals...yes its hard, but to buy them means only more are bred and sold...

some might say i hard, not helping a animal or giving it a good home, but i look at the larger picture. if i took i had bought every neglected animal i had seen in a shop then i would be surounded by hundreds (if they lived) and the shop would go out and buy more...

would have been hard with the cat, but i still would have had to do it, no matter how heartbreaking it was...

I think you probably know the answer but head and heart do alway work together do they? Its an animal lovers nightmare going to buy and animal and seeing its not right - do I take it anyway (rescue it, so to speak) or do I walk away (heart saying 'but it needs my love').

All that said, you have her now, maybe the more important question is what to do now?

i agree with geckoqueen ,whats done is done & whats important is what you do now please get her checked for your own piece of mind :thumbsup:

don't beat yourself up - we did the same thing eight years ago when we got our first oriental cat (oscar) ...

These sort of cats are not supposed to leave their mum till around ten weeks!
Not only because of their physical development but also their mental development.

To avoid any behaviour problems may I suggest, if you havn't already, get another siamese or oriental.
We did this and it really helped with Oscars development... just little things like using a scratch pad and learning how to play etc....
He also had a cat to snuggle up to, to wash and to feel safe with.

Theres a post on here about siamese rescue ..... why not get in touch with them ?

alt the breeder who bred our two 12mth old kittens is very nice and approachable... might be worth phoneing her... pm me and I'll send on the details.

Finally Oscar, grew into a very fine little cat.. a little small but a great cat to live with.
simon.

I take it she isn't registered with GCCF - they insist that kittens do not leave the breeder until 13 weeks old and should come ready vacinated (and, ideally, microchipped).

Pedigree Orientals typically cost between £250- £350 or more depending on the colour and I am disgusted that someone would willingly hand over a kitten at less than 6 weeks old, especially as Orientals can be so flaky in personality at the best of times. Socialisation with mum and litter mates up to 2-3 months after birth is so important and you may find she becomes extra clingy and nervy if she does not have contact with other (fully vaccinated) pets in the home. Obviously, she can't be vaccinated herself until she's at least 9wks old herself, so you need to be careful with her around other cats, to prevent her getting any infection.

Definitely the best complete food for her is the Royal Canin babycat/ kitten and if possible, try not to leave her alone for long periods - Orientals hate to be alone, crave human attention and are so intelligent, if they get bored they are likely to get into mischief.

Silly things to watch out for: not leaving the loo seat up or leaving bathwater unattended, or looking out for trailing electric cables - our Havana Aero had a thing for metal scouring pads- she kept putting them in our electric toaster! Fortunately, we spotted the first one before we switched the toaster on.

We think Aero was the runt of the litter- she's still quite petite for an Oriental, but she came from a breeder who also bred GSDs and has no fear of dogs, plus she lives with a housefull of cats- she hates change and demands to be THE cat sleeping at the head of the bed, but other than that, is a pretty rounded character. Oh and she's got out of the scouring pad/ toaster habit now.

Enjoy your new baby- lesson for future though- never hand over a deposit until you've inspected the goods-try not to fall for the emotional blackmail- much as it's upsetting to see a sickly or young kitten, use common sense- you could end up making a very costly mistake if the one you buy has all manner or diseases or heredity ailments - and if you're buying a pedigree and want to be certain that IS what you're getting- ask to view the kittens with mum, see the pedigree and find out who the dad is so you can do some research before you hand over the cash - it's very easy to get conned and end up paying for a 'moggie' if it's not registered.

PS, when we were looking for Havanas, we were reccomended to see a breeder in Sheffield and when we got there, the place was a tip, kittens all over the place, riddled with fleas and the breeder was very vague about their pedigrees, plus there appeared to be several litters...Needless to say, we made our excuses and left. Sometimes you have to travel to get what you want- and wait.

Aero came from Lincoln, Amber, our Maine Coon from Sheffield but reccomended by the MC Cat Club, Ashia the Wegie came from a fantastic breeder just outside York and Alfie the barmy Bengal from Beverley.

Hi, Buy her some biscuits called Royal Canin Babycat 34. They are so tiny she will easily manage, its a biscuit thats made for easy weaning before kitten biscuits should be given. so I would highly recommend it, its not cheap but I cant recommend it enough. Most pet shops should sell it :)

http://www.feedem.co.uk/cat-41/cat-food-64/royal-canin-cat-69/royal-canin-baby-cat-4333.htm?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=ppc&utm_term=4333&utm_campaign=froogle
i would be careful royal canin can be to rich for some babies at that age i would use james wellbeloved and soak it so its soft also though royal canin do a babymilk that is great you could mix that up for her as it has the nutrients that she should have got from her mum you5r vet should be able to order it or you can get direct from royal canin , i use royal canin and yes its great but sometimes for not such a young baby it can be to high in protein i always use james wellbeloved with young pre 8wk animals as its hypoallergic and contains no artifical stuff

i would be careful royal canin can be to rich for some babies at that age i would use james wellbeloved and soak it so its soft also though royal canin do a babymilk that is great you could mix that up for her as it has the nutrients that she should have got from her mum you5r vet should be able to order it or you can get direct from royal canin , i use royal canin and yes its great but sometimes for not such a young baby it can be to high in protein i always use james wellbeloved with young pre 8wk animals as its hypoallergic and contains no artifical stuff

Ok, sorry, we have always used it with rescue kittens that we have bottle fed or ones that have come from their mum too early and it has always been really good. But try either :)

Ok, sorry, we have always used it with rescue kittens that we have bottle fed or ones that have come from their mum too early and it has always been really good. But try either :)
i love royal canin feed all mine with it but found out it can be to rich for some babies by experience , thats the food the milk they do is great and comes with bottles and everything you need , not been a know it all but my experience in pre 8wk babies wasnt good you may have been fine and not critizing

sorry to say it, but by buying her no matter how cute, your giving the 'breeder' more cash to breed more kittens, if people just said no till they were older or couldn't sell them because of breeding conditions maybe he would keep them longer or realise that there isn't as much money in it as they thought, Why would they stop if people are buying them? you've just handed over a load of cash to him? try reporting him next time, surely they deserve better!